Inflorescence cymose, with flowers often axillary or in the axils of leaf-like bracts, often in whorl-like clusters or reduced to single flowers. Flowers with at least the corolla zygomorphic and usually 2-lipped, bisexual, 5-merous. Sepals 5, more or less fused, persistent in fruit. Petals 5, more or less fused into a tube, 2-lipped or 5-lobed. Stamens 4, fused to corolla tube, often with only 2 fertile; anthers 2- or rarely 1-locular, dehiscence introrse by longitudinal slits. Ovary superior of 2 fused carpels, 4-locular, usually 4-lobed; style gynobasic or appearing so because base of style surrounded by enlarged lobes of the ovary.

Fruit a schizocarp with four 1-seeded mericarp or drupaceous, often with pyrenes.

Distribution and occurrence: World: 236 genera, c. 7173 species, almost cosmopolitan, but absent from the coldest regions of high latitude and altitude. Australia: 44 genera, c. 750 species, all States.

The Australian representatives of this family are currently under revision. This family includes many culinary herbs which have been introduced to Australia, such as Melissa (lemon balm), Mentha (mint), Lavandula (lavender), Origanum (marjoram), Rosmarinus (rosemary) and Thymus (thyme). These genera are also cultivated as ornamental plants, together with species from the following introduced genera: Leonotis, Monarda, Nepeta (cat mint), Phlomis, Plectranthus (including Coleus) and Stachys. Of the Australian endemic genera, Prostanthera and Westringia, and to a lesser extent Hemiandra, Hemigenia and Microcorys, are frequently grown as ornamentals. In Australia, the following genera were previously classified in the Verbenaceae: Callicarpa, Clerodendrum, Oncinocalyx, Phyla, Premna, and Vitex. They are now included in the Lamiaceae.

Corolla zygomorphic, more or less 2-lipped or one lobe much larger than other lobes, more than 4 mm long; stamens 4, more or less didynamous; fruit more than 4 mm diam., often black, bluish or red, sometimes purplish but then dullBack to 1

Fruit less than 15 mm diam., blue to black or reddish purple; leaves or leaflets with lamina less than 10 cm long and less than 5 cm wide; corolla less than 15 mm long; in rainforest and coastal communities north from the Richmond RiverBack to 27